<h2>Name</h2>
<p>
<em>Al-Ikhlas</em> is not merely the name of this Surah but also the title of
its contents, for it deals exclusively with <em>Tauhid</em>. The other Surahs of
the Quran generally have been designated after a word occurring in
them, but in this Surah the word <em>Ikhlas</em> has occurred nowhere. It has
been given this name in view of its meaning and subject matter.
Whoever understands it and believes in its teaching, will get rid of
<em>shirk</em>(polytheism) completely.
</p>
<h2>Period of Revelation</h2>
<p>
Whether it is a Makki or a Madani Surah is disputed, and the difference
of opinion has been caused by the traditions which have been related
concerning the occasion of its revelation. We give them below ad
seriatim: 
</p>
<OL>
<p>
<LI> Hadrat Abdullah bin Masud has reported that the
Quraish said to the Holy Prophet (upon whom be be peace): "Tell us of
the ancestry of your Lord."Thereupon this Surah was sent down.
(Tabarani). 
</p>
<p>
<LI> Abul Aliyah has related on the authority of Hadrat
Ubayy bin Kab that the polytheists said to the Holy Prophet (upon whom
be peace): Tell us of your Lord's ancestry."Thereupon Allah sent down
this Surah. (Musnad Ahmad, Ibn Abi Harim, Ibn Jarir, Tirmidhi, Bukhari
in <em>At-Tarikh</em>, Ibn al-Mundhir, Hakim, Baihaqi). Tirmidhi has related a
tradition on the same theme from Abul Aliyah, which does not contain
any reference to Hadrat Ubayy bin Kab, and has declared it to be more
authentic. 
</p>
<p>
<LI> Hadrat Jabir bin Abdullah has stated that a bedouin
(according to other traditions, some people) said to the Holy Prophet
(upon whom be peace): "Tell us of your Lord's ancestry."Thereupon
Allah sent down this Surah.(Abu Yala, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir,
Tabarani in <em>Al-Ausat</em>, Baihaqi, Abu Nuaim in <em>Al-Hilyah</em>). 
</p>
<p>
<LI> Ikrimah
has related a tradition form Ibn Abbas, saying that a group of the
Jews, including Kab bin Ashraf, Huyayy bin Akhtab and other, came
before the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) and said: "O Muhammad
(upon whom be Allah's peace and blessings), tell us of the attributes
of your Lord, Who has sent you as a Prophet."Thereupon Allah sent down
this Surah. (Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Adi, Baihaqi in <em>Al-Asma</em> was-<em>Sifat</em>). 
</p>
<p>
In
addition to these, some other traditions also have been cited by Ibn
Taimiyyali in his commentary of Surah Al-Ikhlas, which are as follows;
</p>
<p>
<LI> Hadrat Anas has stated that some Jews of Khaiber came before the
Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) and they said:"O Abul Qasim, Allah
created the angels from light, Adam from rotten clay, Iblis from the
flame of fire, the sky from smoke, and the earth from the foam of
water. Now tell us about your Lord (of what He is made)."The Holy
Prophet (upon whom be peace) did not give any reply to this question.
Then Gabriel came and he said: "O Muhammad, say to them: <em>Huwa Allahu
ahad</em>." 
</p>
<p>
<LI> Amir bin at-Tufail said to the Holy Prophet: "O Muhammad,
what do you call us to?"The Holy Prophet replied: "To Allah."Amir
said: "Then, tell us of what He is made, whether of gold, silver, or
iron?" Thereupon this surah was sent down. 
</p>
<p>
<LI> Dahhak, Qatadah and
Muqatil have stated that some Jewish rabbis came before the Holy
Prophet, and they said: "O Muhammad, tell us what is your Lord like,
so that we may believe in you. Allah in the Torah has sent down His
description. Kindly tell us of what He is made, what is His sex,
whether He is made of gold, copper, brass, iron, or silver, and
whether He eats and drinks. Also tell us from whom He, has inherited
the world, and who will inherit it after Him." Thereupon Allah sent
down this Surah. 
</p>
<p>
<LI> Ibn Abbas has reported that a deputation of the
Christians of Najran along with seven priests visited the Holy Prophet
upon whom be peace), and they said: "O Muhammad, tell us what is your
Lord like and of what substance He is made."The Holy Prophet replied:
"My Lord is not made from any substance: He is unique and exalted
above everything."Thereupon Allah sent down this Surah. 
</p>
</OL>
<p>
These
traditions show that different people on different occasions had
questioned the Holy Prophet (upon whom be peace) about the essence and
nature of the God to Whose service and worship he invited the people,
and on every occasion he recited by Allah's command this very Surah in
response. First of all, the pagans. of Quraish asked him this question
in Makkah, and in reply this Surah was sent down. Then, at Madinah,
sometimes the Christians, and sometimes the other people of Arabia,
asked him questions of this nature, and every time Allah inspired him
to recite this very Surah in answer to them. In each of these
traditions, it has been said that this Surah was revealed on this or
that occasion. From this one should not form the impression that all
these traditions are mutually contradictory. The fact is that whenever
there existed with the Holy Prophet a verse or a Surah previously
revealed in respect of a particular question or matter, and later the
same question was presented before him, Allah inspired him to recite
the same verse or Surah to the people as it contained the answer to
their question. The reporters of <em>Hadith</em> describe the same thing,
saying: When such and such a question or matter was presented before
the Holy Prophet, such and such a verse or Surah was revealed. This has
also been described as repetition of revelation, i. e. the revelation
of a verse or Surah several times. 
</p>
<p>
Thus, the fact is that this Surah is
Makki, rather in view of its subject matter a Surah revealed in the
earliest period at Makkah, when detailed verses of the Quran dealing
with the essence and attributes of Allah Almighty had not yet been
revealed, and the people hearing, the Holy Prophet's invitation to
Allah, wanted to know what was his Lord like to whose worship and
service he was calling them. Another proof of this Surah's being one of
the earliest Surahs to be revealed is that when in Makkah Umayyah bin
Khalaf, the master of Hadrat Bilal, made him lie down on burning sand
and placed a heavy stone on his chest, Bilal used to cry "<em>Ahad,
Ahad</em>!"This word was derived from this very Surah.
</p>
<h2>Theme and Subject Matter</h2>
<p>
A little consideration of the traditions regarding the occasion of the
revelation of this Surah, shows what were the religious concepts of the
world at the time the Holy Prophet began to preach the message of
<em>Tauhid</em>. The idolatrous polytheists were worshiping gods made of wood,
stone, gold, silver and other substances. These gods had a form, shape
and body. The gods and goddesses were descended from each other. No
goddess was without a husband and no god without a wife. They stood in
need of food and drink and their devotees arranged these for them. A
large number of the polytheists believed that God assumed human form
and there were some people who descended from Him. Although the
Christians claimed to believe in One God, yet their God also had at
least a son, and besides the Father and Son, the Holy Ghost also had
the honor of being an associate in Godhead: so much so that God had a
mother and a mother-in-law too. The Jews also claimed to believe in
One God, but their God too was not without physical, material and
other human qualities and characteristics. He went for a stroll,
appeared in human form, wrestled with a servant of His, and was father
of a son, Ezra. Besides these religious communities, the zoroastrians
were fire worshipers, and the Sabeans star worshipers. Under such
conditions when the people were invited to believe in Allah, the One;
Who has no associate, it was inevitable that questions arose in the
minds as to what kind of a God it was, Who was one and Only Lord and
invitation to believe in Whom was being given at the expense of all
other gods and deities. It is a miracle of the Quran that in a few
words briefly it answered all the questions and presented such a clear
concept of the Being of Allah as destroyed all polytheistic concepts,
without leaving any room for the ascription of any of the human
qualities to His Being.
</p>
<h2>Merit and Importance</h2>
<p>
That is why the Holy Messenger of Allah (upon whom be peace) held this
Surah in great esteem, and he made the Muslims realize its importance
in different ways so that they recited it frequently and disseminated
it among the people. For it states the foremost and fundamental
doctrine of Islam (viz. <em>Tauhid</em>) in four such brief sentences as are
immediately impressed on human memory and can be read and recited
easily. There are a great number of the traditions of <em>Hadith</em>, which
show that the Holy Prophet on different occasions and in different
ways told the people that this Surah is equivalent to one third the
Quran. Several <em>ahadith</em> on this subject have been related in Bukhari,
Muslim, Abu Daud; Nasai, Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, Musnad Ahmad, Tabarani
and other books, on the authority of Abu Said Khudri, Abu Hurairah,
Abu Ayyub Ansari, Abu ad-Darda, Muadh bin Jabal, Jabir bin Abdullah,
Ubayy bin Kab, Umm Kulthum bint Uqbah bin Abi Muait, Ibn Umar, Ibn
Masud, Qatadah bin an-Numan, Anas bin Malik, and Abu Masud (may Allah
be pleased with all of them). The commentators have given many
explanations of the Holy Prophet's this, saying. But in our opinion it
simply means that the religion presented by the Quran is based on
three doctrines: <em>Tauhid</em>, Apostleship and the Hereafter. This Surah
teaches <em>Tauhid</em>, pure and undefiled. Therefore, the Holy Prophet (upon
whom he Peace) regarded it as, equal to one-third of the Quran. 
</p>
<p>
A
tradition on the authority of Hadrat Aishah has been related in
Bukhari, Muslim and other collections of the <em>Ahadith</em>, saying that the
Holy Prophet sent a man as leader of an expedition. During the journey
he concluded his recitation of the Quran in every Prayer with <em>Qul
Huwa-Allahu ahad</em>. On their return him companions mentioned this before
the Holy Prophet. He said: "Ask him why he did so."When the man was
asked, he replied: "In this Surah the attributes of the Merciful God
have been stated; therefore, I love to recite it again and again."
When the Holy Prophet heard this reply, he said to the people: "Inform
him that Allah holds him in great love and esteem." 
</p>
<p>
A similar incident
has been related in Bukhari, on the authority of Hadrat Anas. He says:
"A man from among the Ansar led the Prayers in the Quba Mosque. His
practice was that in every <em>rak`ah</em> he first recited this Surah and then
would join another Surah to it. The people objected to it and said to
him:"Don't you think that Surah Ikhlas is by itself enough? Why do you
join another Surah to it? You should either recite only this surah, or
should leave it and recite some other Surah. He said: "I cannot leave
it, I would rather give up leadership in the Prayer, if you so
desired."The people did not approve that another man be appointed
leader instead of him. At last, the matter was brought before the Holy
Prophet. He asked the man, "What prevents you from conceding what your
companions desire? What makes you recite this particular Surah in every
<em>rak`ah</em>?"The man replied: "I have great love for it."The Holy Prophet
remarked: "Your this love for this Surah has earned you entry into
Paradise."
</p>

